User:Twp/Jewish Defense League

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This is a proposed revision of the Jewish Defense League article. Tim Pierce 16:03, 10 December 2005 (UTC)

The Jewish Defense League (JDL) is an activist Jewish movement whose stated goal is protecting Jewish people and property from anti-Semitism.

1 Founding of the JDL
2 Attitudes towards the JDL
3 Controversies
4 Sources and References
5 See also
6 Sources

[edit] Founding of the JDL

Rabbi Meir Kahane, founder of the JDL, speaking

JDL was founded in 1968 by Rabbi Meir Kahane, who advocated the forced removal of all Arabs from Israel. The goal of the militant group was to protect Orthodox Jewish neighborhoods in New York City and to protest local manifestations of anti-Semitism. [1]

The JDL describes itself in its mission statement as "an activist organization dedicated to the protection and defense of the Jewish people in the Diaspora" and vows "no sanctuary for those who threaten or attack Jewish individuals or institutions."

[edit] Attitudes towards the JDL

The JDL's approach has been criticized by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) as a "gross distortion" of the situation faced by American Jews. The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) has added the JDL to its list of watched "hate groups."

[edit] Controversies

[edit] Terrorism and the JDL

The Federal Bureau of Investigation has described the Jewish Defense League in Congressional testimony as a "violent" and "extremist" group. In a sidebar in its "Terrorism 2000/2001" report, the Bureau said, "The Jewish Defense League has been deemed a right-wing terrorist group." It identified the group in a 1999 terrorism report as the perpetrator of several bombing and arson incidents that took place between 1980 and 1989. Mary Doran, an FBI street agent, described the JDL in 2004 Congressional testimony as "a proscribed terrorist group," though Doran also acknowledged that she is not involved in "policy and administrative decision-making processes."

The National Memorial Institute for the Prevention of Terrorism (MIPT) says in its knowledge base that the last known attack by JDL was on 26 February 1992 and that "Today, JDL is not actively engaged in terrorist actions."

[edit] Imprisonment and deaths of Irv Rubin and Earl Krugel

On December 12, 2001, Irv Rubin, JDL International Chairman, and Earl Krugel, a member of the organization, were charged with conspiracy to commit acts of terrorism. Authorities claimed that the two planned attacks on Arab-American Congressman Darrell Issa's office and on the King Fahd Mosque in Culver City, California.

Rubin proclaimed his innocence and was reportedly eager to wage a vigorous court battle in his defense. On November 4, 2002, at the federal Metropolitan Detention Center in Los Angeles, California, Rubin fell 18 feet to the concrete floor below. He was in a coma for ten days before dying on Nov 13. The incident has been ruled a suicide, though some of Rubin's supporters have alleged murder.

On February 4, 2003, Earl Krugel pled guilty to conspiracy and weapons charges stemming from the terrorist plot and was expected to serve up to 20 years in prison. He was killed in an assault at the Federal Correction Institution in north Phoenix, Arizona on November 4, 2005.

[edit] Schism

The JDL has been in a state of modest upheaval since Rubin's death. In October 1994, the group split into two factions. One group is led by Rubin's widow Shelley Rubin. The other was formed by Bill Maniaci. As of this writing it is chaired by Ian Sigel.

[edit] Baruch Goldstein

Image:Dr Baruch Goldstein Israel.jpg

Dr. Baruch Goldstein. Hebrew sign says rofe ("[Medical] Doctor")

On 25 February 1994, Dr. Baruch Goldstein shot and killed 29 Muslims in Hebron, Israel. Because Goldstein was a member of the JDL, this incident attracted some media attention to the JDL.

Maniaci and Sigel's site at http://jdl.org.il/ does not make any explicit statement on the subject of Baruch Goldstein. A statement on Rubin's web site says:

Dr. Goldstein was a brilliant surgeon, a mild-mannered Yeshiva-educated man who was promoted to the rank of major in the IDF. He was warned by his superiors in the military to prepare an open field hospital in anticipation of another murderous attack by the hostile Arab population of Hevron during the Jewish festival of Purim. Many of these Arabs were standing outside Goldstein's synagogue in the Cave of the Patriarchs and yelling 'Slaughter the Jew.' Goldstein had lost 30 close friends in the last few years; they were murdered by Arabs in the Hevron-Kiryat Arba area. One of those was the son of his best friend, Mordechai Lapid; as Goldstein rushed to give the young man medical aid, he was held back by the Arabs on the scene and the young man died. Additionally, there is proof that the Arabs were hoarding arms, ammunition, food and supplies in response to a Muslim call for a massacre on the Jewish holiday of Purim. Goldstein took what he believed to be a preventative measure against yet another Arab attack on Jewish women and children. Goldstein had been a member of the JDL in the United States. The JDL has no chapters in Israel and Goldstein was not a member at the time of the incident. [2]